Disclaimer: I am not owning

The day you die

Shikamaru stared at the people within the prison walls. Civilians, shinobi, it all didn't matter then. All that mattered was to escape.

'Barely possible considering the situation.' He thought, looking at the meager bits of food offered. After all, the Rock Nin would hardly care if they lived.

Shikamaru shakily tried to stand up, but it was a futile attempt. His body was weak from the weeks of misuse and abuse it had endured.

"God this is bad. If I stay, it is an almost certain death. And if I try to leave…"

At this point, one of the guards opened the door and shoved a few other people into his cell. Two of them appeared to be unconscious. The third person opened her eyes.

"Shika!" Ino threw herself onto Shikamaru, sobbing into his chest. "Shika, I found you."

"Huh?" he asked, slightly confused at Ino's un-Ino like behavior.

"Shika, my daddy's dead." Ino continued sobbing and clutching Shikamaru's shirt. He awkwardly patted her until she quieted down to sniffles.

Shikamaru gently pulled Ino away from him and crawled to the other two bodies. It was Kiba and Tenten.

"Tenten? Kiba?"

Tenten groggily opened her eyes. "Shikamaru! Where is Neji?" she asked, in a voice slightly laced with panic.

"He's not with you?"

"No."

"He escaped with Lee." Kiba said warily, resting on his elbows.

Shikamaru sighed with relief, until he realized the implication, "Are they being hunted down right now?"

"They…" Kiba stopped to double over and cough, his shoulders shaking with the force. "They may be back in Suna."

"Will Neji be alright?" Tenten asked, sounding like a lost child. Her eyes were wide open and she was trembling.

"I'm sure Neji can take care of himself," said Shikamaru, reassuring her. Tenten nodded, although she still looked terrified.

"Shikamaru? I-I've g-got to t-t-tell you s-something." Ino stumbled over her words. The said shinobi looked at her questioningly.

"C-Chouji's dead."

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"WHAT?" Shikamaru asked disbelievingly.

"He…our living conditions were horrible. There wasn't enough food. I tried to give him some of mine, but he wouldn't take any. Even as he grew weakened and pale, he still always helped me. Chouji saved me from those shinobi." Ino began sobbing all over again.

Tenten turned around and saw Shikamaru's shocked expression and Kiba's resigned one. "Shikamaru?" she asked tentatively.

"Leave me alone." Shikamaru turned his back towards the others.

"A-alright." Tenten walked over to Ino.

Kiba looked at Shikamaru and said to the two girls, "we should sleep. It'll make time go by faster." They nodded mutely and lay down on the cold hard floor. It didn't take long for their exhaustion to take over and they fell asleep.

Kiba leaned against the wall. He couldn't sleep, not when Shikamaru was hurting so bad.

"Shikamaru, it's okay. I understand how you're feeling."

"Kiba, best friends don't grow on trees."

"Neither do sisters." Shikamaru froze in shock and glanced at Kiba.

"Y-you mean…?"

"Hana's dead. She was killed by the Rock Nin. I wish I could've saved her, but I was too late. Now she's gone. And she's not coming back to me, ever."

"I'm sorry, Kiba."

Kiba sighed, "That's not my point. Shikamaru, right now, we have no time to waste. I know you must feel pretty bad, but there's nothing you can do. We need to focus on more important issues. Put Chouji on hold until the right time. I'm sure he wouldn't want you suffering like this."

"Right."

"Let's go to sleep."

"Sure."

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Neji and Lee jumped swiftly from branch to branch, not daring to talk. The enemy shinobi could be heard from behind them, following. Neji frowned at the situation. Both he and Lee were chakra-deprived, sleep-deprived, energy-deprived and on top of that, both suffered from severe injuries.

"Looks like our youth isn't enough, eh?" Lee grinned, panting.

Neji glared at him. "Lee, shut up."

Behind them, there were screams as the sand shinobi made their appearance.

Neji sighed in relief. "Good. They made it in time." His byakugan slowly faded and his eyes returned to normal. Suddenly, Lee collapsed.

Raising his eyebrows, Neji bent over Lee's body, wincing at his broken ribs. Neji closed his eyes with frustration. What a time for Lee to fall asleep…

In dreamland, Lee was shouting and dancing to a happy tune. There were a billion rainbows in the sky, the flowers looked pretty and artificial, and best of all, Gai sensei was there!

Groaning, Neji picked up Lee and headed in what he hoped was the direction to Suna.

"And where do you think you're going?" said a dark voice from behind.

My first multi-chapter story! Also my first adventure story. Hope you like it! Review!

Sorry if characters are a bit OOC. There's a war going on, after all.

Achillea